Toss That Old Garden Hose

With summer finally here, many of us are realizing that our garden hoses are cracked, broken or leaky and need to be replaced. Although you might think garden hoses are recyclable because they’re made out of plastic, they actually need to be put in the garbage.

Garden hoses are one of the most dangerous items to accidentally toss in your recycling. Why? They are long, unruly and can wrap around sorting machinery. This not only damages the machinery, but it also endangers the workers who have to try to untangle them. Toss them in the trash, or, if you’re feeling creative, check out these ideas in the Recycling Guide for repurposing them.

When replacing your garden hose, opt for polyurethane (PU) or natural rubber hoses over PVC hoses. PU hoses can also withstand cold weather and high pressure better than PVC hoses do. Also, they are more eco-friendly because they do not contain chemicals that can leach into the environment.